A Twist Of Faith: Sending Your Child To Another Religion's Schools
Posted on: 5 July 2016
As a parent, one of your jobs is to instill your morals and values in your child. It is also your job to make sure that your child gets the best education possible. If you live in a town where religious private schools are at the top of the pack for education, sending your child to these schools may be giving them their best shot educationally. The way that they perform in grade school to high school can heavily impact the rest of their lives. If you are concerned about sending your child to a school where the religion is different from their own, here are some ways to prepare them.
Get started learning before they enroll
After your child is accepted, but before the actual semester starts, sit down with your child and let them know that they will be going to a school where the belief system is different than your own. Rent some books that talk about the religion and discuss the religious beliefs with your child so that they are not surprised when they get there. Many religious schools have religion teachers, so you can also ask the school's religious professor to speak with you and your child prior to the semester's beginning.
Go over how to remain respectful
Most religious schools will feature a prayer time or other religious service on a regular basis. Attendance for the students may or may not be mandatory. Let your student know that they should always quietly stand, sit, or kneel as required for prayers and that they should sit and be attentive during any religious services. They do not have to verbally or mentally participate, aside from remaining respectful of those around them.
Encourage questions
If your child is not used to being around people who have a different belief system, do not shut down their need to understand, learn, and question. Encourage them to ask any questions about the religion that they may be interested in. These questions can be asked to the religious personnel that will be involved in the school, or their main professor. Most religious schools encourage others who are not members of the religion to learn about their traditions, so they will welcome your students questions with open arms.
Participate in your own religion
To impart your own values into your child, you should have free talks about religion each week when they get home from school. Make sure that while they are learning about the religion of their school, they are still participating in their own. Along with participating in religious rites, be sure you are adequately explaining why you believe as you do. This can provide your student with a sense of belonging and pride in your religious community and to their school, as well.
Reach out to a school like St Anne's Catholic School for more information.
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